Question Number: 29320

Law 13 - Free Kicks 4/15/2015

RE: rec Adult

Jim Gibney of Derry, Londonderry United Kingdom asks...

Watching the PSG v Barca game this evening, I saw PSG get a free kick in central midfield and had runners in very promising positions.the taker tried to take quick free kick but a Barca player closed off the passing option by moving in to the channel- he did this action several times.the Barca player was about 6 yards from the ball. What is the correct adjudication here? I would have thought the Barca player should have been cautioned? And could he have been cautioned more than once four his actions?

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Jim
At the Pro level this happens quite a lot. Pros seem to accept this tactic and most times do not take the free kick. You will also notice that pro players at this level will play the ball short many times perhaps by changing channel. If the player stops the ball in this situation the law states that it is failure to respect the required distance when play is restarted which is a caution. A repeat of this by the same player will result in a 2nd caution and a sending off.
Interestingly at lower levels players do not accept it as willingly and many times players do take the free kick and the opponent gets cautioned for stopping the restart. I'm also constantly on the case of players who run in front of the ball to stop the quick restart. Generally though it is only a caution when the ball is stopped after being kicked.
here are examples
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OWLiKQSMgjI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMpIAJUgiEQ&t=4m5s
Had the kicker not taken the kicks or kicked the ball in a different direction I suspect that no cautions would have issued

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

Hi Jim,
failing to respect the distance and delaying the restart are deliberate tactical interferences that if cautioned on a more regular basis instead of fooling around with spray foam it might set a better example for recreational football. One can hardly blame those who witness these transgressions go unpunished thinking they can do the same! If the player is CAUTIONED for the actions it sets the bar. If that player was unwilling to learn from the referee awarding him the 1st caution, no doubt showing him a second yellow card for his 2nd caution will remind him of the folly of these actions.

Cheers